Author: Rhys Gregory

Welsh Government is calling upon schools across Wales to produce their own school travel plan which can transform the way everyone travels to school and help promote travelling actively. All schools in Wales will be able to address known issues outside the school gates, identifying ways in which they can improve safety and make the streets outside schools healthier, happier places for everyone. Welsh Government has partnered with Sustrans Cymru, who are providing a comprehensive toolkit to support schools in creating an active travel school plan. An active travel school plan is a brief document outlining a school’s actions to…

A Cardiff Capital Region City Deal (CCR) housing investment fund is bringing 200 much-needed new homes to the Abercanaid area of Merthyr Tydfil. The £35m Housing Viability Gap Fund was launched in 2021 by CCR to stimulate the housing market by helping to unlock previously stalled housing sites across the region. £3.5m of the fund has been secured for Dragon Park, Merthyr Tydfil, for works including ground remediation and associated development infrastructure. These works will unlock 200 units, of which up to 20% will be affordable homes. The remediation works will be completed on site by November 2024 with the…

First Minister Mark Drakeford has welcomed the news that Wales will host matches at the finals of a major senior international football tournament for the first time. In a ceremony in Switzerland today, UEFA announced that the UK and Ireland’s bid to host the 2028 UEFA European Championships has been successful. Wales has previously hosted major sporting events, including the UEFA Champions League Final in 2017, boxing, the London 2012 Olympics and the Rugby World Cup final.  EURO 2028 will be the first time matches in the finals of a major senior men’s international football tournament are played in Wales.…

Nationwide will undertake its most significant rebrand in a generation as it commits to the High Street at a time banks continue to close branches. All 605 branches will be rebranded as Britain’s biggest building society continues to value face-to-face service at a time the major banks have closed significant numbers up and down the country. Research from Nationwide reveals 63 per cent of people value their local branch, with face-to-face service the top reason. The Cardiff branch on Queen Street will be updated in the rebrand. The new look for one of Britain’s most trusted brands represents its biggest image…

Trivallis, the biggest housing association in Rhondda Cynon Taff and one of the biggest in Wales, has been successful in regaining the highest level of approval from Welsh Government. Just 18 months ago, the Welsh Government Housing Regulator voiced concerns over the way Trivallis was run and put it under review. Trivallis were asked to come up with an improvement plan and the Regulator took a more hands-on approach to monitoring its finances and leadership. A new Chief Executive, Duncan Forbes, was brought in and a new Chairman of the Board, Nick Beckett, was also appointed. Following a year of…

A new business referral group is launching in Cwmbran next month as part of an attempt to set a new world record for global networking company BNI. The world’s leading business referral organisation, with over 300,000 members in seventy-seven countries, BNI provides weekly networking meetings for groups of businesses, who follow a structured meeting agenda that enables them to use their combined network of contacts to find business opportunities and referrals for one another. Last year, its members in towns and cities across the UK & Ireland shared over half a billion pounds (£538m) of business between one-another, with the…

A range of employers and organisations from across the Caerphilly county borough have been finding out how they can support local people who are currently working and in receipt of certain benefits. A special partnership event, hosted by Caerphilly Council at their Penallta house HQ, highlighted the support that is available to employers and their employees from the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP), the council and a range of other partner organisations. The event focused on promoting the support that is available including mid-careers reviews & personal learning accounts, myth busting around the 16-hour limitation to accessing Universal Credit…

Schools and junior rugby clubs in Wales are being given the chance to win free specialist training equipment provided by the same company supplying teams at this year’s Rugby World Cup. Aramis Rugby, a family-run business based here in the UK, is providing training, grounds, and fitness equipment to the 20 teams taking part in the Rugby World Cup and is also an official partner of the Italian, Fijian, and Samoa national teams. Its specialist equipment is currently playing a key role in helping the national sides prepare for their World Cup fixtures as the tournament heads to the quarter-final…

There is less than a week to go until the total ban on the use of snares and glue traps in Wales comes into force, Rural Affairs Minister Lesley Griffiths has reminded people this week. From 17 October the use of both snares and glue traps will be illegal in Wales, the first ban of its kind in the UK. The ban on the use of snares is a Programme for Government commitment, and was supported by the majority of those who took part in the public consultation. Both snares and glue traps cause great suffering to animals, and are…

Roberto Romanello was born in Swansea and now resides in the small West Glamorgan town of Gorseinon, north-west of the city. This is a distinctly rural community that’s the complete opposite of the glitz and glamour of some of the places Romanello’s been in the last couple of decades. Romanello may not be a name that’s well-known to the people of south Wales, but it’s certainly one that’s familiar with poker enthusiasts and poker players. As a matter of fact, the man behind it happens to be the most successful Welsh live poker player in the history of the game.…